This is a podcast for the curious. Strap yourself in for genuine dialogues with people who think deeply and are ready to tackle the big questions, such as broadcaster Terry O'Reilly, fantasy author Guy Gavriel Kay, and journalist Sally Armstrong.

What is the nature of political power and how is it distributed?
What are the pros and cons of a federal system like Canada's, where
power is shared between governments? Is it possible that Justin
Trudeau and Donald Trump are singing from the same "make our
country great again" song-sheets, just on opposite sides of...

What is the role of art and music in our society? Is art
supposed to effect change or simply represent it after the fact? Is
all good art subversive, and is all subversive art good? What does
it mean for an arts organization to be responsible to its audience:
give them what they want, or help them develop newer,...

"We live in the age of the individual. Every day, we're
bombarded with depictions of the beautiful, successful, slim,
socially conscious, and extroverted individual that our culture has
decided is the perfect self, and we berate ourselves when we don't
measure up." So begins the publisher's description of Will...

One of the most compelling subjects I want to tackle on this
show is virtual reality. Because VR goggles have been around for
decades now, we can see what’s going on behind them as an ongoing
fad – we’re told, again and again, that the change will be
overwhelming....

What can we learn from the trials, tribulations and shipwrecks
of our collective human past? How does that past shape the human
story today? How can we liberate history from its eurocentric
roots? And, most importantly, what's the link between history and
jazz?

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About the Podcast

Your weekly podcast for a world in flux.
Globalization and climate change. The rise of social media and the decline and fall of Blockbuster Video. AI and VR. Donald Trump and Flat Earthers. The world is changing so fast that we can't get a grip on how we got here, let alone where we're headed.
Join Ben Charland as he peels back the headlines to ask, what are the events, characters, forces and ideas that shape the human story today? Have things always been this nuts, or are they getting crazier by the day? Who were those barbarians that took down the Blockbuster Empire? Just what on Earth is going on?